The needs of the Palestinian Labour Market, with regards to recent Graduates

All sectors of the Palestinian economy have acknowledged the current gap between the educational aims of universities and the needs of the economy, a gap characterised by reliance on academic courses and underdevelopment of vocational training programmes.
The needs of the Palestinian Labour Market, with regards to recent Graduates event called to address these concerns, with the aim of highlighting the subject of the employability of recent graduates, and advocating increased vocational training and use of internships among recent graduates and current students. At the event recent statistics on the Palestinian labour market were presented, and the need to concentrate on youth training, internships and job placements was highlighted. Given the central importance of the private sector in providing opportunities for young graduates, this event provided and opportunity to facilitate and strengthen ties between businesses and educational and civil society institutions.
At the event Bader Zaamreh, Sharek Youth Forum's Executive Director, highlighted the problem of course selection at university, in particular he criticised both educational and labour market institutions for the lack of information regarding career prospects made available to students when selecting courses:
“There is a big problem with identifying undergraduate majors, and the relationship between these majors and the needs of the Palestinian Labour Market.”